72% of all internet users are now active on social media. About 89% of that usage is made up of mostly 18-29 year olds. For this age group, a connection and/or obsession with celebrities has become one of their top priorities in life as opposed to their schooling, careers and actual social life. Everything that they say and do is pictured on Instagram, hash-tagged on Twitter and updated on Facebook. A question generations have been asking for years is whether or not this constant social media feed is putting a damper on our authentic social lives. There is no exact answer to this inquiry. Truth is, social media can have both a negative and positive effect on our lives depending on how it is manipulated. Although there are many illustrations of celebrities posting inappropriate, provocative and unkind things, some use social media to further the awareness of important and crucial epidemics, advancements and topical stories. By using their fame to connect to readers and followers emotionally and physically, it helps spread the awareness of serious issues, instead of using it to spread negativity and their personal image.

One example of a celebrity that has used their “power” for a good cause is Lupita Nyong’O. Recently, she gave a speech about her own self-esteem and how it was influenced by the magazines, television shows and advertisements she saw everywhere she went. As a child, she only saw tall, skinny, white women in the proceeding commodities. Lupita gained the sense that she was not beautiful when she began to idolize these “porcelain doll” type women instead of the mesmerizing African-American women like herself.

Using this story of her childhood, she was able to connect to her audience both physically and emotionally. Physically, she was able to help spread the word about self-esteem and the issues related with it that are sprouted from advertisements in all sorts of shows and magazines. Without her fame, she would be stuck at home trying to make an epidemic matter to people by constantly tweeting a hashtag, only to receive no sort of response in return. Instead, being so famous, her thousands of followers on all types of accounts have helped her achieve her goal of reaching out to millions of people from all over the world — and all she had to do was speak her mind. Emotionally, the speech was more important than any hashtag. Her wise words and motivating narrative truly took root in the hearts of everyone who listened to even a small portion of her speech. Lupita told a story that everyone can relate to: a time in your life when you have felt anything less than normal or beautiful. By being able to relate to her audience, she made them want to help with this issue, not feel like they had to help. 

People heard her words, felt her words, and then told of her words. Without social media, this process could only reach a certain limit. Now, people everywhere are able to reach new heights. Although it sometimes seems like celebrities are only looking to increase their own personal image, that is not the only reason they go about social media. People like Lupita Nyong’O are seeking a change and are using media to their advantage. We should recognize this virtue and help it blossom.